Kerala: They were trolled cruelly by innumerable hidden faces through fake handles on social media platforms in the past. From been called abnormals to maniacs, they were even labelled as 'Satan's children'. They survived severe life threats . Life has not been a cakewalk for them so far but they stay unaffected, undeterred and too much in love with each other. Know the soulmates- Nikesh Pushkaran (37) a businessman and Sonu MS (33) a techie who are Kerala's first married gay couple. They were in news in 2018 when they got married at the famous Guruvayoor temple at Trishoor.

They were newsmakers when they moved the first petition in India to legalise same-sex marriages , at the the Kerala High Court in 2020. Almost two and a half years of the petition, Sonu and Nikesh are in lime light again after the recent move by the Supreme Court to transfer all similar petitions on legitimation of queer unions.

The MookNayak delved into the queer couple's lives to know more about the. hardships they are facing in daily life.

Sexual orientation is biological, not a choice

Nikesh who is the youngest among three siblings, the other two being sisters, say " Sexual orientation is not a matter of option, it's purely biological and natural". One only realises his or her sexual orientation during the growing process. He adds, " there are no proved statistics but it is believed that only 3-5 % of the people fall in the LGBTQ community and so the feeling of first time realization that one belongs to the sexual minority section, is highly shocking. "

Sonu says, the fear and stress of being different than the major lot is traumatic and haunts the person for the entire life. " Only those who have suffered the pain can understand the feeling. People like us need the love, support and encouragement of our family, relatives and friends to come out of the trauma and live with confidence & pride. The couple confess that initially they were trolled and disliked but after the Supreme Court verdict on decriminalization of 377, there is a change in mindset and people are extending their support to the LGBTQA community.

Demand equal rights of a normal couple

Nikesh and Sonu believe that the reading down of section 377 is yet not relevant because it only permits sexual relationship between same persons of genders but do not deem their marriage legal. " We don’t just want freedom to have sex. We want other rights too as a homosexual couple" asserts the duo. Nikesh says recently a bank turned down his loan application because Sonu was the co-applicant and they did not have any proof of their relationship except for some pictures clicked on their wedding.

" If there is a medical emergency and I have to undergo a surgery, Sonu won't be able to sign the consent document and my parents will have to do that. In the case of any hetrosexual couple, the consent of spouse is held supreme" he says. Sonu, who works for a call center says, " Despite being married, we have to tick the 'single' status in various forms, we cannot name each other as nominees of our bank accounts or insurance policies which is an unequal and unfair treatment" .

The couple who wish to adopt one or two kids in the future, see legitimisation of queer unions as the only permanent solution to the challenges faced by them and numerous others of the community. " The couple is happy that now the Supreme court would decide on all the same sex marriage petitions. The states and the centre have to file their replies on the issue but Nikesh and Sonu are hopeful of a positive reply from the Kerala government since the Leftist party had announced support for equal rights of the LGBTQ section in their manifesto.

We are 'Unique creations' of God

Nikesh and Sonu are vocal on their identities and communicate unhesitatingly with people to spread awareness on homosexuality. " To those who believe in God, we say we are the unique creations of the Almighty and for those who don't believe in God, we are the unique creations of Nature" they simply put in.

" There are various colors on the LGBTQA flag that denotes the different kinds of people we are. Life has different colors and all of these colors together make it beautiful,isn't it?" asks Nikesh. It is very cruel to harass people and bereft them of their fundamental rights.

Non-recognition of same sex marriage violates the principles of equality, individual dignity and personal autonomy, as prescribed by the Constitution, they assert. The couple who had a difficult time initially in convincing their parents , have all the family support now. " We cannot be a bad influence to anyone else nor our culture will be ruined if same sex marriages are legalised.

It is a natural phenomena and more than 95% of the population had always remained attracted to the opposite gender. We are exceptional by birth, everyone needs to understand this" they emphasize. The couple who have a vlog and are active on social media platforms are gaining mass support from people across the globe. " We are lucky to get life partners of our choice and most importantly , able to live like what we actually are. We want to live together for a 100 more years and if there is another birth , we would like to be born again as gays and find each other" the couple declare.